Vending machine



1,634,581 July 5' 1927 R. KEssLl-:R

VENDI NG MACHINE 1,634,581 July 5, 1`927- R. KEssLER VENDI'NG MACHINEFiled April 29. 1926 S'Sheets-Sheet 3 7 y 47, Quorum?! Pumas July s.1921.

ROBERT KESSLEB, F SCBANTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

VENDING Application lledpril 28, 1926. Semi No. 105,541'.

My invention relates to vending machines and has for its object theprovision ot a machine from which a plurality of artlcles or packagesmay be selectively dispensed. The

lnvention seeks to provide a mechanism in which a plurality of articlesor packages may be viewed by a purchaser and a selected package orarticle brought into position to be withdrawn from the machine by thecustomer. The invention also has for its object the provisionV of meanswhereby the withdrawal of the article or package Will be )direventeduntil the proper coins have been eposited, and another object of theinvention is to provide novel means whereby after the deposit ofthecoins the package or article will be rendered accessible. Thesestated objects, and other objects which will inci' dentally appear inthe course of the following description, are attained in such amechanism as is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and theinventionresides in certain novel features which will be particular-1ypointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a lan view, partly broken away, of a machine embodying myinvention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2; 'g

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section on the line 1 -410i Fig. 2; Y

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation on the line 5--5 of Fig. 4; i

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a detail showing a corner of the door;

Fig. 8 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the turntable or packagecarrier.

The casing 1 may be of any preferred formor dimensions and may beconstructed with one compartmentor a plurality of comartments eachcontaining a mechanism em iodying the invention so that within a.Vlimited space a large variety of merchandise may be displayed andvended. The top of the frame or cabinet is covered by a pane of glass orother transparent material 2, and, if desired, the sides of they cabinetmay be made of the same material so that the merchandise displayed forsale may be readily viewed by a prospective customer. The merchandise isarranged upon .a turntable ortray 3 upon which are secured a pluralityof radial par titions 4 whereby a -plurality of compartments isproduced, and this tray is provided at its center on its under side'witha pivotl post or stud 5 adapted to seat within a bearing 6 upon asupporting frame 7 which is engaged u on cleats or other supports 8within the rame or cabinet so that an empty tray may be readilyWithdrawn and a filled tray.; substituted therefor. It. will be understood that the back of the cabinet or enclosing frame is providedwith a removable wall or a door which is normally locked, so that theinsertion Aand removal of the trays will be easily accomplished. Thetray is provided on its under side with a circularl gear rack 9 meshingwith a pinion 10 on the inner end of a shaft 11 which is journaled insuitable bearings provided therefor in the front wall of the cabinet orframe and equipped Vat its outer end with a turning knob or handle 12,as shown.- When a pur- Chaser desires to obtain some article or packagedisplayed upon the tray, he rotates the shaft 11 t roug manipulation ofthe knob 12 in an obvious manner so that the tray is rotated about thecenter 5 until the compartment containing the desired article or ackageis brought into the delivery ositlon.

In order that the tray may move easily, rollers 13 are provided u on thesup orting frame 7, as shown in ig. 3, and t e tray rests upon theserollers so that it will move easily and will be supported in ahorizontal position at all times. Within the cabinet at the front' sideof the same is a hood 14 of proper form and dimensions to extend overand enclose the particular compartment on the tray from which the goodsare to be removed, and this hood communicates directly with the opening15 in the front wall of the casing, which opening is normally closed bya door 16.

In the illustrated embodiment of the in vention, the door 161is mountedfor sliding movement in channels or-tracks 17 provided therefor at thetop and bottom of the door opening and is normally held against movementby a bolt 18 mounted vertically in suit able guides provided'thereforbelow and at one side ofthe door opening and pivotally attached at itslower end to a lever or trigger arm 19 which *is pivoted between itsends upon a bracket or supporting frame 20 secured within the cabinetadjacent the door opening. The inner end of this lever or trigger arm 19extends upwardly and is equipped with a roller 21 which bears againstthe under side of the carrier or tray 3 and is adapted-to engage or seatin any one of a series of'recesses 22, provided in the bottom of thetray, as the compartments thereon are brought under the hood14. 1A.spring 23 is attached to therfront portion of the arm 19 and to a.ixedfpoiiit von the frame below the said arm so that it terds constantlyto retract the bolt 18 and to swing the roller 21 upwardly. When thetray is rotating, therollere21 bears against the flat uninterruptedsurface of the tray and is, consequently, depressed inst the tension ofthe spring 23 so that t e bolt 18 is projected into the path of the door16 and revents opening movement of the door. en the rotation of the traybrings a recess 22 over the roller 21', the spring at once swings theroller into the said recess and the tray' is then stopped but if thecompartment thus brought under the hood 14 does not contain thearticular merchandise desired by the purc aser, the rotation of thetray, may be continued until the proper merchandise has been broughtinto the delivery osition. As long as turning force is applic to theknob 12, the tray'will be rotated inasmuch as no great amount of forcewill be required to overcome the seating of the roller 21 in the notch22, but if the rotation. of the shaft l1 be stopped with the roller enaging a seat or recess 22, the tray will be eld stationary and the bolt18 will-remain in its retracted position so that the door 16 may beopened.

When the bolt 18 is retracted as just described, it removes one obstacleto the opening movement of the door but the door cannot be opened untilcoins have been inserted inasmuch as the coin chutes 24 and 25 proectinto the path of the dooigthese tubes eing pivotally mounted, as at 26 u'on the front wall of the cabinet and yieldab y held. with their lowerends in the door by a spring 27 disposed etween the u per extremity ofthe chute and the a )acent portion ofthe front wall of the cabinet.Formed in the wall ofA the cabinet at the side of the door opening 154and in such position that they register with the lower ends of therespective coin chutes 24, '25, are

y coin tubes 28, 29 which open at their lower ends into a moneyVcompartment 30 in which I may be disposed a coin box .or drawer 31.

Within the cabinet and mounted upon a portion of the bracket or frame 20are a pair of pivoted dogs 32, 33 which project forwardly into therespective coin tubes 28, 29 and serve as stops to arrest the descent ofcoins inserted through the respective coin chutes. The dogs 32 and 33not only extend into different coin tubes but are also disposed atdierent elevations, as will be understood upon .reference to Fig. 4, andthe ath of the.

exact position of these dogs may be determined by the coins which it isintended to require for the operation of the machine. In the presentinstance, the tube 29 requires the admission of two nickels, indicated8,1234, while the tube 28 is intended to receive a cent as indicated at35. The dogs 32 and 33 are held in their operative position by bolts 36and 37, respectively, which are disposed vertically and slidable inguides 38 provided therefor in the internal sup rtin bracket 20. Theupper en s of t esebolts 36, 37 are beveled, as shown at 39,.and theyproject into the path of the door. 16, as will be understood, the lengthand position of. the bolts being such that normally a straight side oredge will be presented to the door and, consequently, the movement. ofthe door will be prevented by contact with the said edge. It will alsobe noted upon reference to Fig. 4 that, when the coins are arrested bythe dogs 32, 33, they will project above the u per ends of therespective coin tubes into t e lower ends of the coin chutes so that thecoin chutes will continue to block the movement of the door and preventaccess to the interior ofy the casing through the opening 40 which isprovided to accommodate the coin chutes and permit the opening of thedoor. TheV coin chiites are swung out wardly by the action ofthe door 16and in order that they may move over and away from the coins, they areprovi-ded .in their inner walls at their lower extremities with notches41 whereby they will clear the coins as they swing outwardly. To effectthis outward movement of the coin chutes, a .cam 42 is providedI on thedoor and proyects therefrom in position to ride against the side andinner wall of the chutes and thereby force the same-outward against thestrength of the spring 27 in an obvious manner. If coins have beeninserted in the machine as re aired, the opening movement of the doorwil cause a projection 43 thereon at the lower edge of the same to rideupon the projecting coii and press the same downward within thelrespective coin tube so that the bolt 36 017317 disposed at the back01E-said tube willi'he depressed, it beingI noted that the dogs.I 32, 33pass through and seat in notches in the respective bolts so thatdownward pressure upon the coins tending to swing the dogs downward willtransmit movement to the respective bolts and impart thereto a suicientdepression to bring the beveled edge 439 of the same into the path ofthe door, whereu on the continued movement of the door wi l cause it toride on the bolt and depress it to the limit of its movement. Access tothe compartment within the hood 14 cannot be had until the door is fullyopened and the depression of the first bolt 37 will not permit the doorto be full opened inasmuch as it must still clear an operate frame or`the second bolt 36 so that the mechanism cannot be actuated until theproper coins have been deposited. On the inner side of each bolt is a lu44 which bears upon a rocking arm 45 nlcrumed upon the inner supportingframe 20 and having its free end connected to a link 46 which depends toand is pivotally attached. to a rocking arm or lever 47 also fnlcrumedupon the inner supporting frame 2O and extending lnwardly therefrom. Theinner end of this arm 47 carries a bolt or locking pin 48 which isguided by an eye 49 at, the inner end of an arm 50 forming a part of theframe or bracket 20. This bolt or lockingl pin 48 is normally held inits lowered position by a spring 51 attached to its lower end and to afixed part of the cabinet and has lts upper end arranged toy enga e inone of a series of sockets 52 provide in the bottom of the tray 3. Whenthis bolt 48 engages a socket 52, the tray will be held against furthermovement and it will be now understood that the bolts 36, 37 are solocated that, when the door 16 is opened to permit Vwithdrawal of thearticle or package within the hood 14, both bolts will be held in theirlowered position and the bolt 48 will, consequently, be held inengagement with the tray and the tray cannot be moved to bring anotherarticle or package opposite the door opemng until the door has beenagain closed and the mechanism thereby reset for the insertion ofadditional coins. When the door is returned to closed position, thespring 51 withdraws the bolt 48 from the tray andprojects the bolts 36,37 into their upper posltions so that the door'cannot be agrazin openeduntil coins have been inserted.. o .facilitate the movement-of the door16, it is provided with a knob 53.

It is thought the operation will be fullyy understood rom the foregoingdescription, taken in connection with the accompanying drawin After thetray has been set by Y manipu ation of the knob 12 and the coins Y thecorner of the have been inserted, the door is pushed toward the openingposition and the cam 42 thereon will ride against the coin chutes andswing them outwardly, the continued movement of the door bringing thelower edge thereof and the presser 43 onto the upper projecting edgeportion of the respective coins so t at they will be depressed and aninitial lowering movement imparted to the bolts 36, 37 sufficient tobring the beveled edges thereof into osition to be engaged by oor,whereupon the continued movement of the door will depress said bolts andthe lowering movement of the bolts will be transmitted through theroeking arm 45 and its connections to the bolt 48 so that the tra willbe locked against movement. The 4oor will, of course, extend across theupper ends of the bolts and will maintain the locked position of thetray until the door has been moved toward the closed position and, inorder to clear the bolts, the door must be moved until it is nearlyclosed. If it be not fully closed, the cam 42 will prevent the return ofthe coin chutes to their inner operative position and the boltswill-project upward into the path of the door so that the door cannot beagain moved into open position and access to the hood 14 will be,consequently, prevented. When the tray is moved so as to bring a secondcompartment into the discharge position, the roller 21 will be depressedand, consequently, an upward movement will be imparted to the bolt 18 sothat, if the door` be not fully closed, the upward movement of this boltwill be prevented and, therefore, further movement of the tray cannot behad. When the bolts 36, 37 4are depressed by the door, the dogs or coinrests 32, 33, are swung downwardly and inwardl out of the paths of thecoins which then dlop into the coin box.

It will be readily noted that l have pro vided a simple and compactmechanism whereby merchandise may be vended nutoniatically or withoutthe services of a salesman, and the parts are of such construction andarrangement that they are not apt to get out of order. A great varietyof merchandise ma be dispensed through the use of my mac ine and thearticles may be changed from time to time as may be deemed desirable.The size of the coin tubes and coin chutes and the relative arrangementof the mechanism directly operated by the coins may be varied as may benecessary to adapt the machine to merchandise of any particular value. f

In order that the tray 3 may be held firmly tothe pinion 10 and theroller 21, a presser roller 60 is preferably mounted upon the bracket orinner supporting frame 20 to ride upon the upper surface of the tray andthereby prevent the forward ortion of the same tilting or rocking in snca manner as will interfere with the successful operation of themechanism.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

l. In a vending machine the combination of a casing, a tray movahlmounted in the casing, a door mounted in t e casing and controllingaccess to the tray, a bolt mounted in the path of the door, andcoin-controlled means whereby opening movement of the door will retractsaid bolt and positively lock the tray against movement.

2. In a vending machine, the combination of a casing, a tray rotatablymounted therein, a door controlling access to the tray, bolts projectinginto the path of the door, coincontrolled means whereby movement of thedoor will retract said bolts, and a bolt operatively connected with thefirst-mentioned bolts whereby to lock the tray e einst movement when theErst-mentioned lts are retreated.

3. In s. vending machine, the combination of e casing, s. tra rotatablymounted there in, a door cont Y, Iing access to the tray, bolts disposedin the path of the door, a. rocking arm to be actuated by said bolts, abolt disosed below the tray, operative connections etween said bolt andthe rocking arm, leldable means holding the last-mention bolt out ofenagement with the tray, and coincontrolle means whereby upon opexiinmovement of the door the first-mentione bolts will be retracted and thebolt below the tra will be moved into engagement therewit to lock theVtray e inst movement.

4. In `e, vending mae ine, the combination of a casini, a doorcontrolling access to the casing, olts mounted on the casing andnormally projecting into the path of the door, coin tubes in the casingadjacent the respective bolts, and coin rests extending across the cointubes and enge ed with said bolts, the said rests being so t is osed asto support coins in the path of the oor Wheieby opening movement of thedoox will deress the coins to impart movement to the lolts and thendepress the bolts to com- 'having a. Ypluralit?l 'o l "tivelypresentajb'lelat .be

pletely retract the seme andtlschyeige the V3o coins.

5. In e velldx'ig'mitellisse.v the combination of a. casing, adooroontollng Ancr'cefss"to :the casin, coin tubes theloiw t e pathofmevement d vfor supporting coins in' seid in path f1.m; ofbens seinemne' man tubes normallyrpgrqieeti "mto the path of the door and; engagedcoin-su rtmg means, eoin chutes @not e on the easing end ',elalbfgheintnement with the enin .t l to move ,the @0in Ciiesf upon .u openingmovement 6' I P Mies de @stamm of a @Sms have Y wea. a .tray mevlthlyiIn t.

emnrtments xxigt weer the com ntment o the pmsented to the opening;means o'feeleeted Y com altmeiit "tothe a doofnm.`- mal y closing theee'inseontrolled meins to permit opening of the door and preventmovement e the tray when the 55 door is open.

In testimony Vwbereenf I sigimtnre.

Y ROBERI` [n e] bolts -vvheneby to lock the tray a ainst move ment whenthe first-mentioned olts are retracted.

3. In a vending machine, the combination of a casing, a tra rotatablymounted therein, a door control in access to the tray, bolts disposed inthe pat of the door, a rocking arm to be actuated by said bolts, a boltdisosed below the tray, operative connections between said bolt and therocking arm, ieldable means holding the last-mentions bolt out ofengagement with the tray, and coincontrolled means whereby upon openinmovement of the door the lirst-mentione bolts will be retracted and thebolt below the tray will be moved into engagement therewith to lock thetray against movement.

4. In a vending machine, the combination of a casino, a door controllingaccess to the casing. olts mounted on the casing and normally projectinginto the path of the door, coin tubes in the casing adjacent therespective bolts, and coin rests extending across the coin tubes andengaged with said bolts, the said rests being so dis osed as to supportcoins in the path ot' the t oor whereby opening movement of the doorwill depress the coins to impart movement to the bolts and then depressthe bolts to completely retract the same and discharge the coins.

5. In a vending niachine. the combination of a casing, a doorcontrolling access to the casing, coin tubes in the casin arranged belowthe path of movement of t e door, means for supportin coins in saidtubes in the path of *the oor,'bolts adjacent the coin tubes normallyprojecting into the path of the door and engaged with thecoin-supporting means, coin chutes mounted pivotally on the casing andyieldably held in alinement with the coin tubes, and means on the doorto move the coin chutes outwardly upon opening movement of the door.

6. In a vending machine, the combination of a casing having an openingin one wall, a tray movably mounted in the casing and having a.plurality of compartments selectively presentable at the opening tocover the compartment of the tray presented to the Opening, means forpresenting a selected compartment to the opening, a door no1-- mal yclosing the opening, and coin-controlled means to permit opening of thedoor and prevent movement of the tray when the door is open.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature.

ROBERT KESSLER. [L s] CERTIFICATE F CQRRECTIQN.

Patent No. 1,634,581.

Granted July 5, i927, to

I ROBERT KESSLER.

lt is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specificationof the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 4,linea 49, 50, and

51, claim '6, strike out the words "to cover the compartment of thetr'a'y presented to the opening"; and that the said Letters Patentshould be reed with this correction therein that the same muy conform tothe record of the cue in the Patent Office.

Signed end celled this 16th dey of August, A. D. 1927.

Sell.

M. J. Moore, Acting Commissioner of Patente.

CERTIEICATE 0F QQRRECTION.

Patent No. 1,634,581. Granted July 5, 1927, to

ROBERT KESSLER.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specificationof the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 4,lines 49, 50, and 51, claim '6, strike out the words "to cover thecompartment of the tray presented to the opening"; and that the saidLetters Patent ahould be read with thia correction therein that the samemay conform to the record of the caae in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 16th day of August, A. D. 1927.

M. J. Moore, Seal. Acting Commiaaioner of Patente.

